Senate unanimously approves Posey's giant snake bill

A bill that would regulate giant constricting snakes and slap owners with a $100 annual fee for owning them passed the Senate in a 38-0 vote Thursday.

Sponsored by Sen. Bill Posey, a Rockledge Republican, the legislation is intended to crack down on impulse buying of snakes.

On the bill's second reading on Wednesday, he said irresponsible owners are freeing their pets once they're too big to handle.

"In no time at all they're starting to eyeball the children," Posey said, adding that they're contributing to the breeding population of Burmese pythons in the Everglades, where the snakes are feeding on native wildlife. "They will eventually kill every other living thing edible in the Everglades," Posey said.